Ask a Franciscan
Who Was the ‘Beloved Disciple ‘?
In the Gospel of John, “the disciple whom Jesus loved ” is at the foot of the cross (19:26) and is entrusted with caring for the mother of Jesus (19:27). Who is this disciple and what makes him more loved than anyone else?
For centuries, most Christians have thought it was the Apostle John, but biblical scholars have more recently questioned this. The “Beloved Disciple, ” who appears only in the Gospel of John, is introduced in 13:23 with later references in 18:15–16; 19:26–27; 20:2–4, 8; and 21:7, 20, 23–24.
A Deep Wound
How could God take my precious son at age 43 and yet allow rotten people who have stopped believing in God to keep on living? My son was a great Catholic and spent eight years in Catholic schools.
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Why the Push for a Latin Mass?
There seems to be a push to return to the Latin Mass and all its implications. Our parish has become very divided when this was imposed on us with refusal of Communion in the hand, reintroduction of Communion rails, and ...
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Pedophile Priests Protected
My wife and I do not feel comfortable discussing this with our parish priest and hope you can provide some guidance. As cradle Catholics, we find it very difficult to continue in our Catholic faith because of repeated reports of ...
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St. Francis and the Eucharist
What did the Eucharist mean to St. Francis? How did he express his devotion to it?
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Questioning God’s Plan
My wife and I are both seriously ill and have been since we married 14 years ago. Now her medications have stopped working, and we are meeting with the doctors. I'm currently very angry and questioning God's plan. I don't ...
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Where Do Prayers Go?
If you are praying for someone who may have gone to hell, where do those prayers go? Should you keep praying for them even though you don't really know where anyone goes? Only God knows for sure.
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